arXiv subjects

Per Delsing

Publications and source records attributed to Per Delsing.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Electrical post-fabrication tuning of aluminum Josephson junctions at room temperature

Josephson junctions are key elements of superconducting quantum technology, serving as the core building blocks of superconducting qubits. We present an experimental study on room-temperature electrical tuning of aluminum junctions, showing that voltage pulses can controllably increase their resistance and adjust the Josephson energy while maintaining qubit quality factors above 1 million. We find that the rate of resistance increase scales exponentially with pulse amplitude during manipulation. Following the manipulation, the resistance increases spontaneously through contributions proportional to both the initial resistance and the preceding manipulation. We show that this spontaneous increase halts at cryogenic temperatures, and resumes again at room temperature. Using our stepwise protocol, we achieve up to a 270% increase in junction resistance, corresponding to a reduction of nearly 2 GHz of the qubit transition frequency. These results establish the achievable range, relaxation behavior, and practical limits of electrical tuning, enabling post-fabrication mitigation of frequency crowding in quantum processors.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2025

Quantum Acoustics with Tunable Nonlinearity in the Superstrong Coupling Regime

Precise control of mechanical modes in the quantum regime is a key resource for quantum technologies, offering promising pathways for quantum sensing with macroscopic systems and scalable architectures for quantum simulation. In this work, we realise a multimode mechanical cavity coupled to a superconducting Kerr resonator, which induces nonlinearity in the mechanical modes. The Kerr mode is realised by a flux-tunable SQUID array resonator, while the mechanical modes are implemented by a surface acoustic wave (SAW) cavity. Both mechanical and electromagnetic modes are individually addressable via dedicated measurement lines, enabling full spectroscopic characterisation. We introduce a straightforward protocol to measure the SQUID array resonator's participation ratio in the hybrid acoustic modes, quantifying the degree of hybridisation. The participation ratio reveals that our device operates at the onset of the multimode coupling regime, where multiple acoustic modes simultaneously interact with the nonlinear superconducting element. Furthermore, this platform allows controllable Kerr-type nonlinearities in multiple acoustic modes, with the participation ratio serving as the key parameter determining both the dissipation rates and nonlinear strengths of these hybridised modes. Close to the resonant regime, we measure a cross-Kerr interaction between seven pairs of mechanical modes, which is controllable via the SQUID array resonator detuning. These results establish a platform for engineering nonlinear multimode mechanical interactions, offering potential for future integration with superconducting qubits and implementation of multiple mechanical qubits.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

On-demand single-microwave-photon source in a superconducting circuit with wideband frequency tunability

In this article, we propose a new method of generating single microwave photons in superconducting circuits. We theoretically show that pure single microwave photons can be generated on demand and tuned over a large frequency band by making use of Landau-Zener transitions under a rapid sweep of a control parameter. We devise a protocol that enables fast control of the frequency of the emitted photon over two octaves, without requiring extensive calibration. Additionally, we make theoretical estimates of the generation efficiency, tunability, purity, and linewidth of the photons emitted using this method for both charge and flux qubit-based architectures. We also provide estimates of optimal device parameters for these architectures in order to realize the device.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2024

A small footprint travelling-wave parametric amplifier with a high Signal-to-Noise Ratio improvement in a wide band

We characterise a small footprint travelling-wave parametric amplifier (TWPA). The TWPA is built with magnetically flux-tunable superconducting nonlinear asymmetric inductive elements (SNAILs) and parallel-plate capacitors. It implements three-wave mixing (3WM) with resonant phase matching (RPM), a small cutoff frequency for high gain per unitcell and impedance matching networks for large bandwidth impedance matching. The device has 200 unitcells and a physical footprint of only 1.1 mm^2, yet demonstrates an average parametric gain of 19 dB over a 3 GHz bandwidth, an average effective signal-to-noise ratio improvement of 10 dB and a clear speedup of qubit readout time.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2024

Experimental Evaluation of Moving Target Compensation in High Time-Bandwidth Noise Radar

In this article, the effect a moving target has on the signal-to-interference-plus-noise-ratio (SINR) for high time-bandwidth noise radars is investigated. To compensate for cell migration we apply a computationally efficient stretch processing algorithm that is tailored for batched processing and suitable for implementation onto a real-time radar processor. The performance of the algorithm is studied using experimental data. In the experiment, pseudorandom noise, with a bandwidth of 100 MHz, is generated and transmitted in real-time. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), flown at a speed of 11 m/s, is acting as a target. For an integration time of 1 s, the algorithm is shown to yield an increase in SINR of roughly 13 dB, compared to no compensation. It is also shown that coherent integration times of 2.5 s can be achieved.

eess.SP↗

arXiv2023

Peripheral circuits for ideal performance of a travelling-wave parametric amplifier

We investigate the required peripheral circuits to enable ideal performance for a high-gain travelling-wave parametric amplifier (TWPA) based on three-wave mixing (3WM). By embedding the TWPA in a network of superconducting diplexers, hybrid couplers and impedance matching networks, the amplifier can deliver a high stable gain with near-quantum-limited noise performance, with suppressed gain ripples, while eliminating the reflections of the signal, the idler and the pump as well as the transmission of all unwanted tones. We also demonstrate a configuration where the amplifier can isolate. We call this technique Wideband Idler Filtering (WIF). The theory is supported by simulations that predict over 20 dB gain in the 4-8 GHz band with 10 dB isolation for a single amplifier and 30 dB isolation for two cascaded amplifiers. We demonstrate how the WIF-TWPAs can be used to construct controllable isolators with over 40 dB isolation over the full 4-8 GHz band.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Mitigation of interfacial dielectric loss in aluminum-on-silicon superconducting qubits

We demonstrate aluminum-on-silicon planar transmon qubits with time-averaged ${T_1}$ energy relaxation times of up to ${270\,\mu s}$, corresponding to Q = 5 million, and a highest observed value of ${501\,\mu s}$. We use materials analysis techniques and numerical simulations to investigate the dominant sources of energy loss, and devise and demonstrate a strategy towards mitigating them. The mitigation of loss is achieved by reducing the presence of oxide, a known host of defects, near the substrate-metal interface, by growing aluminum films thicker than 300 nm. A loss analysis of coplanar-waveguide resonators shows that the improvement is owing to a reduction of dielectric loss due to two-level system defects. We perform time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry and observe a reduced presence of oxygen at the substrate-metal interface for the thicker films. The correlation between the enhanced performance and the film thickness is due to the tendency of aluminum to grow in columnar structures of parallel grain boundaries, where the size of the grain depends on the film thickness: transmission electron microscopy imaging shows that the thicker film has larger grains and consequently fewer grain boundaries containing oxide near this interface. These conclusions are supported by numerical simulations of the different loss contributions in the device.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Universal control of a bosonic mode via drive-activated native cubic interactions

Linear bosonic modes offer a hardware-efficient alternative for quantum information processing but require access to some nonlinearity for universal control. The lack of nonlinearity in photonics has led to encoded measurement-based quantum computing, which rely on linear operations but requires access to resourceful ('nonlinear') quantum states, such as cubic phase states. In contrast, superconducting microwave circuits offer engineerable nonlinearities but suffer from static Kerr nonlinearity. Here, we demonstrate universal control of a bosonic mode composed of a superconducting nonlinear asymmetric inductive element (SNAIL) resonator, enabled by native nonlinearities in the SNAIL element. We suppress static nonlinearities by operating the SNAIL in the vicinity of its Kerr-free point and dynamically activate nonlinearities up to third order by fast flux pulses. We experimentally realize a universal set of generalized squeezing operations, as well as the cubic phase gate, and exploit them to deterministically prepare a cubic phase state in 60 ns. Our results initiate the experimental field of universal continuous-variables quantum computing.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Fast generation of Schr\"odinger cat states in a Kerr-tunable superconducting resonator

Schr\"odinger cat states, quantum superpositions of macroscopically distinct classical states, are an important resource for quantum communication, quantum metrology and quantum computation. Especially, cat states in a phase space protected against phase-flip errors can be used as a logical qubit. However, cat states, normally generated in three-dimensional cavities, are facing the challenges of scalability and controllability. Here, we present a novel strategy to generate and store cat states in a coplanar superconducting circuit by the fast modulation of Kerr nonlinearity. At the Kerr-free work point, our cat states are passively preserved due to the vanishing Kerr effect. We are able to prepare a 2-component cat state in our chip-based device with a fidelity reaching 89.1% under a 96 ns gate time. Our scheme shows an excellent route to constructing a chip-based bosonic quantum processor.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Modeling and Harmonic Balance Analysis of Parametric Amplifiers for Qubit Read-out

Predicting the performance of traveling-wave parametric amplifiers (TWPAs) based on nonlinear elements like superconducting Josephson junctions (JJs) is vital for qubit read-out in quantum computers. The purpose of this article is twofold: (a) to demonstrate how nonlinear inductors based on combinations of JJs can be modeled in commercial circuit simulators, and (b) to show how the harmonic balance (HB) is used in the reliable prediction of the amplifier performance e.g., gain and pump harmonic power conversion. Experimental characterization of two types of TWPA architectures is compared with simulations to showcase the reliability of the HB method. We disseminate the modeling know-how and techniques to new designers of parametric amplifiers.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2023

Quantum process tomography of continuous-variable gates using coherent states

Encoding quantum information into superpositions of multiple Fock states of a harmonic oscillator can provide protection against errors, but it comes with the cost of requiring more complex quantum gates that need to address multiple Fock states simultaneously. Therefore, characterizing the quantum process fidelity of these gates also becomes more challenging. Here, we demonstrate the use of coherent-state quantum process tomography (csQPT) for a bosonic-mode superconducting circuit. CsQPT uses coherent states as input probes for the quantum process in order to completely characterize the quantum operation for an arbitrary input state. We show results for this method by characterizing a logical quantum gate constructed using displacement and SNAP operations on an encoded qubit. With csQPT, we are able to reconstruct the Kraus operators for the larger Hilbert space rather than being limited to the logical subspace. This allows for a more accurate determination of the different error mechanisms that lead to the gate infidelity.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

Experimental realization of deterministic and selective photon addition in a bosonic mode assisted by an ancillary qubit

Bosonic quantum error correcting codes are primarily designed to protect against single-photon loss. To correct for this type of error, one can encode the logical qubit in code spaces with a definite photon parity, such as cat codes or binomial codes. Error correction requires a recovery operation that maps the error states -- which have opposite parity -- back onto the code states. Here, we realize a collection of photon-number-selective, simultaneous photon addition operations on a bosonic mode, a microwave cavity, assisted by a superconducting qubit. These operations are implemented as two-photon transitions that excite the cavity and the qubit at the same time. The additional degree of freedom of the qubit makes it possible to implement a coherent, unidirectional mapping between spaces of opposite photon parity. We present the successful experimental implementation of the drives and the phase control they enable on superpositions of Fock states. The presented technique, when supplemented with qubit reset, is suitable for autonomous quantum error correction in bosonic systems, and, more generally, opens the possibility to realize a range of non-unitary transformations on a bosonic mode.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

Resolving Fock states near the Kerr-free point of a superconducting resonator

We have designed a tunable nonlinear resonator terminated by a SNAIL (Superconducting Nonlinear Asymmetric Inductive eLement). Such a device possesses a sweet spot in which the external magnetic flux allows to suppress the Kerr interaction. We have excited photons near this Kerr-free point and characterized the device using a transmon qubit. The excitation spectrum of the qubit allows to observe photon-number-dependent frequency shifts about nine times larger than the qubit linewidth. Our study demonstrates a compact integrated platform for continuous-variable quantum processing that combines large couplings, considerable relaxation times and excellent control over the photon mode structure in the microwave domain.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

Three-wave mixing traveling-wave parametric amplifier with periodic variation of the circuit parameters

We report the implementation of a near-quantum-limited, traveling-wave parametric amplifier that uses three-wave mixing (3WM). To favor amplification by 3WM, we use the superconducting nonlinear asymmetric inductive element (SNAIL) loops, biased with a dc magnetic flux. In addition, we equip the device with dispersion engineering features to create a stop-band at the second harmonic of the pump and suppress the propagation of the higher harmonics that otherwise degrade the amplification. With a chain of 440 SNAILs, the amplifier provides up to 20 dB gain and a 3-dB bandwidth of 1 GHz. The added noise by the amplifier is found to be less than one photon.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

Correlated frequency noise in a multimode acoustic resonator

Frequency instabilities are a major source of errors in quantum devices. This study investigates frequency fluctuations in a surface acoustic wave (SAW) resonator, where reflection coefficients of 14 SAW modes are measured simultaneously for more than seven hours. We report two distinct noise characteristics. Multimode frequency noise caused by interactions with two-level system (TLS) defects shows significant degrees of correlations that diminish with increased detuning. This finding agrees with the current understanding of the parasitic TLS behavior as one of the dominant noise sources in quantum devices. In addition to the TLS-induced noise, we observe strong anomalous frequency fluctuations with slow, anti-correlated dynamics. These noise bursts resemble signatures of cosmic radiation observed in superconducting quantum systems.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

Transmon qubit readout fidelity at the threshold for quantum error correction without a quantum-limited amplifier

High-fidelity and rapid readout of a qubit state is key to quantum computing and communication, and it is a prerequisite for quantum error correction. We present a readout scheme for superconducting qubits that combines two microwave techniques: applying a shelving technique to the qubit that effectively increases the energy-relaxation time, and a two-tone excitation of the readout resonator to distinguish among qubit populations in higher energy levels. Using a machine-learning algorithm to post-process the two-tone measurement results further improves the qubit-state assignment fidelity. We perform single-shot frequency-multiplexed qubit readout, with a 140ns readout time, and demonstrate 99.5% assignment fidelity for two-state readout and 96.9% for three-state readout - without using a quantum-limited amplifier.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

Extensive characterization of a family of efficient three-qubit gates at the coherence limit

While all quantum algorithms can be expressed in terms of single-qubit and two-qubit gates, more expressive gate sets can help reduce the algorithmic depth. This is important in the presence of gate errors, especially those due to decoherence. Using superconducting qubits, we have implemented a three-qubit gate by simultaneously applying two-qubit operations, thereby realizing a three-body interaction. This method straightforwardly extends to other quantum hardware architectures, requires only a "firmware" upgrade to implement, and is faster than its constituent two-qubit gates. The three-qubit gate represents an entire family of operations, creating flexibility in quantum-circuit compilation. We demonstrate a gate fidelity of $97.90\%$, which is near the coherence limit of our device. We then generate two classes of entangled states, the GHZ and W states, by applying the new gate only once; in comparison, decompositions into the standard gate set would have a two-qubit gate depth of two and three, respectively. Finally, we combine characterization methods and analyze the experimental and statistical errors on the fidelity of the gates and of the target states.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

Measurement and control of a superconducting quantum processor with a fully-integrated radio-frequency system on a chip

We describe a digital microwave platform called Presto, designed for measurement and control of multiple quantum bits (qubits) and based on the third-generation radio-frequency system on a chip. Presto uses direct digital synthesis to create signals up to 9 GHz on 16 synchronous output ports, while synchronously analyzing response on 16 input ports. Presto has 16 DC-bias outputs, 4 inputs and 4 outputs for digital triggers or markers, and two continuous-wave outputs for synthesizing frequencies up to 15 GHz. Scaling to a large number of qubits is enabled through deterministic synchronization of multiple Presto units. A Python application programming interface configures a firmware for synthesis and analysis of pulses, coordinated by an event sequencer. The analysis integrates template matching (matched filtering) and low-latency (184 - 254 ns) feedback to enable a wide range of multi-qubit experiments. We demonstrate Presto's capabilities with experiments on a sample consisting of two superconducting qubits connected via a flux-tunable coupler. We show single-shot readout and active reset of a single qubit; randomized benchmarking of single-qubit gates showing 99.972% fidelity, limited by the coherence time of the qubit; and calibration of a two-qubit iSWAP gate.

quant-ph↗